Crater Lake and the Volcanoes of the Cascade Mountains

Title: Crater Lake and the Volcanoes of the Cascade Mountains

Context: 1st/2nd Grade (1-2weeks) Social Studies/Geology
When I asked the kids what they wanted to know about mountains they were interested in volcanoes most of all, so we decided to study a selection of “volcanoes” from the Cascades ending with Crater Lake just prior to our trip to Crater Lake.

Objectives:
• By the end of this unit, students will be able to show their understanding of the volcanoes of the Cascade Mountains by completing a mountain journal.
• By the end of this unit, students will be able to show their understanding of the locations of various Cascade Mountains in Oregon by creating a class map of Oregon.

Benchmarks:
Social Studies
• Understand events from local history.
• Locate, identify, and know the significance of major mountains, rivers, and land regions of Oregon.

Geology
• Identify effects of rapid changes on Earth’s surface features including earthquakes and volcanoes.

Preparation:
• Prepare a mountain journal for each student.
• Copy pictures of each mountain for the students to glue into their journals and for the class map.
• Collect information about several mountains, (volcanoes), of the Cascades.
Included is information and photographs of Mt. Hood, Mt. Jefferson, Three Sisters, Mt. Bachelor, Lava Butte, Newberry Caldera, Mt. McLaughlin, and Crater Lake.
• Post a map of Oregon
• Collect student egg carton volcanoes from previous art lesson (see instructions)

Lesson Introduction:
After a general lesson on volcanoes and an art project in which we make an egg carton volcano, I will explain that most of the mountains in Oregon are actually volcanoes and that we are going to learn about several of them.

Learning Activities:
• Each day I will read about a different mountain in the Cascades starting with Mount Hood and ending with Mount Mazama or Crater Lake.
(Choose a variety of types with interesting facts)
• After the information is read we will discuss what facts to put in our journals.
• We will plot the mountains on our map using the students’ egg carton volcanoes.
• For each mountain, students will write its name, other names it is known by, the type of volcano it is, and an important fact specific to that mountain.
• Students will glue a photograph for each mountain on each page.

Closure:
• After completing our journals, we will compare and contrast the different volcanoes we have studied.
• Finally, we will go to Crater Lake and see firsthand what we had just learned about.
• After our trip to Crater Lake we will create a class book about our trip.